


Out of Pocket

by jgh_614



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: High School AU, M/M, Other Members Will Make Minor Cameos
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-29
Updated: 2018-08-07
Packaged: 2019-05-30 04:52:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15089405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jgh_614/pseuds/jgh_614
Summary: Being social was never a problem for Lee Jeno. In fact, his charismatic nature was what he would consider a gift. He got along with just about everyone, he had a rock solid group of friends who at this point were basically family, and didn’t have any enemies. But everything has its flaws. And this flaw was named Na Jaemin.





	1. 1

Being social was never a problem for Lee Jeno. In fact, his charismatic nature was what he would consider a gift. He got along with just about everyone, he had a rock solid group of friends who at this point were basically family, and didn’t have any enemies. But **everything** has its flaws. And this flaw was named Na Jaemin. 

********

Jaemin was one of the most popular people in the sophomore class. Easygoing, killer smile, hell, even good grades. He was probably the easiest person in the world to talk to, but Jeno found himself getting choked up, his mannerisms becoming rather awkward every time he had to speak to this boy. He spent more time staring into his pretty eyes than listening to what he had to say, which resulted in an awkward slap back to reality when he asked if he had even heard anything he had said. 

********

Jeno knew that if he sucked up whatever fears he had, he could probably ask Jaemin out. The many times he had played the situation over in his head, however, all ended as soon as he came to a small bump in the road. Jaemin was probably the straightest kid in the entire school.

********

He didn’t mean to assume, but the boy had girlfriends and only girlfriends in the past. He only hung out with two also-straight upperclassmen, Doyoung and Jaehyun, not to mention, they also had many girlfriends in the past. Although it wasn’t quite solid evidence, it was enough to send Jeno spiraling into thoughts of doubt. 

********

He was jealous of his friends as well, which wasn’t exactly helping. The only other gay kids he knew. Two freshmen, Chenle and Jisung, had recently gotten into a relationship, and Mark (Junior) and Donghyuck (Sophomore), had been going strong for a year. Renjun, another sophomore, was the only single one besides Jeno, and he wasn’t sure how long that was gonna last.

********

So here he sat, next to Renjun, across from Jaemin, trying to collect himself in the middle of a history lecture. He was pulled from his thoughts when the teacher placed a paper before him. Renjun looked at him and sighed, taking the paper from him. “I’ll do it for you, you didn’t listen to a word that dude said. But you owe me ten bucks.”

********

Jeno hummed mindlessly in response, putting his head down on his desk and waiting for the bell to ring.

********

\---

********

“What’s up? You’ve been, uh, a bit spacey today.” Mark sat down at the picnic table with a tray full of what appeared to be some kind of mac and cheese. 

********

Jeno didn’t respond, and continued staring at a tree just ahead of them. 

********

“Hey!” Chenle threw a french fry at the older’s face, snapping him out of it.

********

“What? Sorry.” Jeno scratched the back of his head.

********

“What’s going on?” Donghyuck leaned forward.

********

Jisung shot him a knowing glance. “You know what.”

********

Donghyuck smiled cheekily. “Ohhh, you’re thinking about Jaemin aren’t you?”

********

Jeno slapped a hand over the red-haired boy’s mouth. “Don’t say it so loud.”

********

Jisung snorted. “Your ears are red.”

********

“Shut up, he’s right over there.” Jeno nodded toward the side of the school, where Jaemin himself sat with Doyoung and Jaehyun, blasting some kind of incoherent rap music and eating pizza from an italian restaurant that can only be reached with senior privileges. A flock of girls sat nearby, sneaking glances and giggling as if they weren’t being incredibly obvious.

********

Jaemin looked nice today. He was wearing his usual dark blue sweatshirt, some fitted black jeans, and a pair of strangely white basketball shoes. His light brown hair just barely exposing his forehead, flashing his beautiful smile as he laughed at one of Jaehyun’s nasty jokes. Jeno didn’t want to admit it, but he was completely infatuated with him.

********

“Dude, you’re whipped for him.” Renjun stated, causing the rest of the table to erupt into laughter. 

********

“It’s so fucking obvious, he probably knows.” Jisung struggled to catch his breath, almost falling off of the bench. 

********

As if things couldn’t get any more embarrassing, Jeno accidentally locked eyes with Jaemin for a little too long, and he felt his face burning more than it ever had before. He stood up from the table abruptly, and began walking back towards the school entrance. “I have to go to the bathroom.”

********

He headed to the nearest men’s room, crossing his fingers that there wasn’t anyone in there. And to his luck, it was empty. He looked at himself in the mirror, wincing at the remaining red on his face. He leaned over and turned on the faucet, splashing some cold water on his face in hopes that it would help even in the slightest. After staring at himself for a couple more seconds, the door opened. He didn’t look to see who it was, he just ran into the nearest stall and locked it, face still soaked.

********

He peered under the stall and saw not one pair of shoes, but three. His stomach twisted in a knot so quickly that he was thankful he barely touched his food. They were unmistakably Jaemin’s white sneakers, and the other two had to be Doyoung and Jaehyun’s. He hoped that they were just there to use the bathroom real quick or something, but their feet stayed planted by the sinks. They were more than likely going to be there for the rest of the lunch period.

********

They weren’t doing much other than chatting about generic things, but suddenly, Jaehyun asked a question that made Jeno’s stomach churn even more. “Is anyone in here?”

********

Jeno crawled onto the toilet so that he was crouching, and that his feet couldn’t be seen. He heard one of them push on the stall door next to his and it swung open, footsteps approaching the one he was hiding in. He then pushed on his door, grunting. “Who’s in here?”

********

And then, as if the clock had heard his silent pleads for help, the bell rang. The three exited rather quickly, and Jeno was free to escape. However, before he could exit the bathroom, Renjun appeared, a worried look on his face. “Dude, you okay? Why’s your face all wet?”

********

“Oh, uh,” Jeno lifted his shirt to wipe his face dry. “I, uh.”

********

“Doesn’t matter.” The dark-haired boy cut him off. “Were we too harsh? I mean, we were joking, but if you didn’t take it that way-”

********

“No, it’s fine, really. I just made things worse for myself anyway.”

********

Renjun raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

********

“I’ll explain later.”

********

\---

********

Later that evening, Jeno flung himself into his bed, cursing under his breath. Why couldn’t he get the nerve to speak to another human being? He spent all day thinking about him and what they would do together, yet the thought of actually asking him to do those things made him feel sick. 

********

He was pulled out of his thoughts when his phone rang. It was Mark. “Hello?”

********

“What.”

********

“Come to the park, I want you to meet someone.”

********

“But-”

********

“Actually two people. See you in ten.” He hung up.

********

Jeno sighed, putting on his beat up sneakers and walking out the door. Once he got to the park, he saw Mark, Donghyuck, and two other people sitting at a picnic table.

********

Mark stood up immediately, introducing the two strangers. “Finally, you’re here. I want you to meet Yukhei and Jungwoo.”

********


	2. 2

Jeno sat down across from the two strangers, raising an eyebrow. “Nice to meet you?”

Mark laughed. “Jungwoo’s my cousin, he just moved here. Yukhei came along with him, they’re dating.”

Jeno nodded slowly, still slightly confused. “Alright, well why’d you want me over here so bad.” 

“One, they’re part of our friend group now. Two, they’re seniors, I didn’t want you to be intimidated on Monday. And three, Jungwoo’s gonna be your wingman. Maybe Yukhei too, he sucks at this stuff though.” Mark explained, the last sentence earning him a playful glare from Yukhei.

“Oh hell no.” Jeno shook his head. “I mean, of course you can join us, but a wingman? Two? I don’t like where this is going.”

Jungwoo leaned in, folding his hands on the wooden table. “Look, I know exactly how you feel. I thought Yukhei was straighter than a stripper pole, who would’ve known we’d be going strong for eight months now?”

Jeno shifted in his seat uncomfortably. 

“What’s the boy’s name?” Jungwoo thought for a second. “Jaemin, right?” 

The younger’s face heated up at the mention of his name. “Yep, that’s the one.”

“Got any pictures? What’s his Instagram?” Yukhei asked, phone in hand. Jeno took his phone and found Jaemin’s profile, Jungwoo immediately snatching the device and scrolling aggressively. 

“Ooh, he’s cute, hmm?” Jungwoo showed his boyfriend a picture, Yukhei humming in response. “He has a wonderful smile.”

“I know.” Jeno leaned over the older’s shoulder to get a better view.

Donghyuck laughed. “Renjun said he was totally whipped. He was right.”

Yukhei wiggled his eyebrows. “I can tell.”

“Both of you shut up.” Jeno giggled, tossing a rock in Donghyuck’s direction. “What do you mean by ‘wingman’?”

Jungwoo smirked and shook his head. “Oh, you’ll see.”

\---

“Okay, phase one.” Jungwoo sat behind the steering wheel, cracking open a can of Coke. “You need to open up to me a bit. I barely even know you.”

They sat parked in front of a convenient store, the sun high in the sky. Jeno sat in the passenger seat, just the two of them. “What do you want to know?”

“What’s your biggest fear?”

“Death.” Jeno deadpanned.

“Woah, woah, okay, let’s slow down a bit.” Jungwoo’s eyes widened. “What’s a more minor fear of yours. Like, something oddly specific.”

“Uhh, I guess I’m afraid that I’ll accidentally shoplift. Like, you know, I’ll put something in my pocket and forget it.” Jeno shrugged. “That specific enough?”

“Hell yeah.” Jungwoo opened the car door. “Get out.”

“What? No, you can’t be serious-”

Jungwoo walked around to Jeno’s side of the car and opened the door for him. “You said you wanted my help, so get out of the car.”

“Actually, I never said-”

The older male crossed his arms and tapped his foot impatiently. He stared the younger down until he caved, stepping out of the vehicle.

“God, you’re scary.” Jeno shook his head, Jungwoo smiling in victory as the two walked into the convenient store. “So now what?” He asked as they stopped in front of the candy isle. 

“Put one in your pocket.” 

Jeno opened his mouth to protest, but the older’s look of disappointment made him feel like he shouldn’t speak at all. He grabbed a tiny single-bar Kitkat.

Jungwoo snatched it out of his hand and traded it out for a king size. “Pussy.”

The younger wearily put the bar in his sweatshirt pocket, looking to Jungwoo for what to do next. He didn’t say anything, but motioned him to follow, and he did, until they were outside again and back in the car. Jeno couldn’t help but feel guilty, and it was obvious in his body language.

Jungwoo burst out laughing. He tried to say something but it was hard to understand over the obnoxious amount of wheezing.

“What?”

“It’s a fucking candy bar,” The older wiped a tear from his eye. “You didn’t kill a man.”

“Look, I don’t do things like this.”

“That’s exactly why I’m doing this, you need to learn how to live a little, take risks. I’m here to teach you how to win a probably-straight-guy over, and if you can’t even steal a little candy bar, you sure as hell can’t ask Jaemin out.”

Jeno raised an eyebrow. “I don’t see the connection.”

Jungwoo shook his head, still laughing a bit. “You see, I’m trying to help you get more, uh, what’s the word, uh, courageous. Y’know? I work in strange ways, Jeno. Don’t listen to what I say, I’ll leave you in the dust quicker than you can open your mouth to protest. I’m not getting payed to do this, you’re just lucky I see something in you.” He backed out of the parking spot and got back onto the road.

The younger didn’t bother to say anything back. Jungwoo wasn’t exactly a good influence, but he was right, he did need to live a little. The most dangerous thing he had ever done was cheat on his algebra final the year before. 

“Get out.” Jungwoo unlocked the doors as he parked in front of the younger’s house.

“What? That’s it?” 

“That was phase one.” Jungwoo shrugged, finishing his Coke and crushing the can in his hand. “I’ll see you when you’re ready for phase two.”

Jeno stepped out of the car and onto the sidewalk. “When will I be ready?”

“Later loser.” The older interrupted, tossing the can out the window and driving off, leaving the dark-haired boy to stand alone in confusion. 

“Phase two my ass.” He scoffed, walking up to the front door and letting himself in. “I’m gonna beat Mark’s ass for this.”

\---

That night he dreamt that he was going for a walk, just him and Jaemin, around his neighborhood, holding hands. He turned to the younger, smiling, and leaned in to kiss him, but his stupid ass ringtone for Mark had woken him up. “What the fuck do you want.” He grumbled, still half asleep.

“Damn, who shit in your cereal?”

“Sorry,” Jeno rubbed his eyes. “I was just having a really good dream, and your dumbass woke me up.”

“Hmm, I wonder what it was about.” Mark sneered.

“Shut up, seriously, what do you want.”

“I don’t know, it’s Saturday, you should come hang out, everyone’s here but you. You sleep in until, like, 3.”

“It’s only 11:30.”

“Only 11:30 my ass, you’d sleep for another five hours if it wasn’t for me. Anyway, just hurry up and get the hell over here, we ordered pizza.”

“God, I fucking hate you.” Jeno smiled, ending the call and getting out of bed. He threw on some semi-acceptable clothes and put a hat over his bedhead, calling out to his mother that he was leaving. It was nice outside, it basically felt like summer, despite it only being May. It was that weird period of time where there was only a couple weeks left of school, and everyone was itching for summer break. It gave him a strange nostalgic feeling, putting him in a pretty good mood, despite the rocky start to his day.

He wasn’t even five steps into Mark’s house before witnessing what he had missed already. There was a whole stack of pizza boxes on the table, some random pieces on abandoned plates and such, some half eaten and just laying on the table. Chenle, Jisung, and Renjun were having an extremely heated Uno match, Jisung clearly losing, as he had what looked like 80 cards in his hand. The other four were playing Scrabble, and the board was full of incorrectly spelt words and curses. Yukhei proudly placed the word ‘tiddies’ off of ‘bitch’, Jungwoo throwing a handful of letters in his direction. Mark got up, leaving Donghyuck to suffer with the two who were now ripping pieces off of the board and throwing them at each other.

“It’s about time.” Mark patted Jeno on the shoulder. “Pizza’s almost gone, good luck finding a piece no one ate off of.”

Jeno shrugged, taking a piece off of Mark’s plate and taking a bite. “I don’t care, none of you have aids.”

“UNO BITCHES!” Chenle stood up from his spot on the floor and threw his one card down, Jisung throwing all of his cards at the older in defeat.

“Why can’t you people play board games like normal human beings, look at this mess!” Mark crossed his arms, clearly unamused. 

“Chill, what are you, my mom?” Yukhei shook a letter tile out from his shirt. 

“No, but my real mom is gonna come home later tonight and if she finds a single letter on the floor she’ll kill me.”

“Fuck’s your mom so strict for?” Renjun scooped some cards off of the floor, attempting to make them into a neat deck again. 

“I don’t know,” Mark shrugged. “She’s been really edgy lately, you know, since I told her about me and Donghyuck.”

Jungwoo started picking pieces off of the floor as well. “Rough, is she homophobic or something?”

“Not really?” The brown-haired male sat down on the couch. “I mean, when I told her I was gay, she was totally chill about it, but I guess when she realized that I was actually going out with another male she got sorta… Uncomfortable I guess?”

“What kinda sense does that make?” Jisung sat down next to him, with a two-liter of Sprite.

“I don’t know,” Mark shrugged again. “But I’m sure that if she found out that literally all of my friends were gay too she’d probably kick me out.”

“If she does you can come live with us.” Yukhei offered, referring to him and Jungwoo. “I mean, it’s a tiny, shitty apartment, but it’s better than nothing.”

“Wait,” Donghyuck started. “Does your mom even know all of us are over?”

“Nope.” Mark stood up, grabbing another piece of pizza. “She gets home around five, we’ve got plenty of time.”

“Well in that case,” Yukhei sat down and turned on the TV. “Y'all wanna watch a movie?”


	3. 3

Monday was… Interesting to say the least. The one class Jeno shared with Jaemin, Science, was quite the ride. The teacher had put both of them, along with Renjun, in a group for a project. Despite Renjun’s semi-comforting presence, Jeno was still incredibly nervous. He couldn’t stop his hands from shaking, and he avoided Jaemin’s gaze, even when he was only asking a simple question about the damn project. And then, Renjun decided it would be a good time to escape to the bathroom for twenty fucking minutes, leaving Jeno to face his biggest fear. 

It wasn’t necessarily a disaster, but it wasn’t so smooth either. Jeno managed to trip on the way to the sink, twice, and then he pulled the classic ‘I accidentally brushed my hand against your butt and now I don’t know what to say’, but Jaemin didn’t think anything of it, to engulfed in collecting the data rather than paying attention to his classmate. Renjun finally came back, and went the rest of the class shooting Jeno looks that made him want to punch him in the face.

Lunch wasn’t that great either. They had to eat inside due to the pouring rain that was threatening a thunderstorm, which only bore into Jeno’s overall mood even more. Jaemin sat with his usual posse a table away from Jeno’s usual dwelling, and his friends were almost, well, embarrassing. He didn’t realize how dumb they acted until Jaemin was in earshot of everything they said, and he felt bad for feeling that way toward the jokes he used to lose his shit over. Jungwoo and Yukhei, the new additions, were very open about their relationship, and kept giving each other grossly ‘I’m so in love with you’ looks, and they held hands the entire period, earning disapproving glares from 90% of the cafeteria. 

It all made Jeno’s head spin with embarrassment and guilt, and he ended up getting a headache, resulting in a horrible rest of the day, and to make matters worse, he had to walk home. 

“Are you okay?” Mark caught up with Jeno, who tried his best to leave as fast as possible so he could be alone. Clearly, he wasn’t fast enough. “You’ve been really quiet. You didn’t even laugh anything we said. Something’s up.”

“I’m fine, it’s nothing.” The younger tried to brush off his friend, his hair now matted down and in his eyes from the rain.

“When you say it’s nothing, it’s something.” Mark began, sighing. “When you say it’s nothing, that means that you have a problem, but you don’t want to tell me. But that’s why I caught up with you. Because I care, and I don’t want you to be all emo walking home alone in the rain. Because once you get home I know you’re going to ignore all of my texts and calls, and you’ll sit in your room all day and you most likely won’t say a word to your family. I know you, Jeno. You’ve been weird lately. Every day, you’re so distant. You can talk to me. You need to vent to someone.”

Jeno was silent.

“It’s about Jaemin isn’t it. You’re mad at Renjun, aren’t you. Yukhei and Jungwoo embarrassed you? All of us? It’s fine. I’m not mad.” The older tried his best to sound as nonchalant as possible. “I understand.”

The younger looked up for once, wide eyed. “How did you know?”

“Easy. Well, Renjun told me about Science, and during lunch, it was so obvious. You wouldn’t even look at Jungwoo or Yukhei, clearly you were embarrassed. I don’t think they picked up on it though, so don’t feel bad.”

Jeno sighed, the bottoms of his jeans becoming soaked as he stepped in a puddle. He didn’t care enough to react. “I’m sorry.” He muttered so quietly that he was sure Mark didn’t even hear it.

The two walked in silence until they reached the corner where they typically departed. Jeno turned to walk down his way, but Mark grabbed him by the arm and pulled him back toward him. “No, you’re coming with me. We need to talk.”

Jeno raised an eyebrow. 

“All of this Jaemin stuff, man, you’re letting it ruin your life. He’s literally all you think about ever and you’re so focused on him all the time that you get yourself in these moods. It’s really not that deep.”

“But-”

“Don’t let some kid get to you like that, if he doesn’t like you, he doesn’t like you. You won’t die.”

“I’d die of embarrassment.” Jeno interjected.

“Jeno, c’mon man, think. Look at you. You literally gave yourself a headache from worrying. Chill. In a year, you’ll look back at this and laugh and probably call yourself a pussy.” Mark shrugged. “Just saying.”

“Well how did you ask Donghyuck out? Hmm? Was it easy for you? No. I remember you being so nervous that I was surprised you didn’t piss yourself when you walked up to him.” Jeno said bitterly, shivering a bit as the wind blew the rain hard into their faces.

Mark sighed, he knew he was going to be hard to convince. “Okay, okay, I was nervous. But at least I had the balls to go ask him in the first place.”

“How am I supposed to go up to the straight guy and ask him out? Huh?”

“Well, I didn’t know if Donghyuck was straight or not either-”

“Hyuck was the most flamboyant person in the school, everyone knew he was gay, Mark.”

Mark threw his head back in frustration. “Look, Jeno. You really gotta make a move, like, soon, because this is painful to watch, man. Just do it. If you ask him out now, you get the answer, and you don’t need to linger on it for long. Plus, it’s almost the end of the year. If he says no, you have all summer to get over it.”

“Yeah right.”

The two walked in silence for a while longer, until the older suddenly jumped with excitement. “Oh my god, Jeno. The graduation dance is on Friday. Ask him to go!” It was crazy how fast Mark switched moods.

“What!? No! That gives me three days tops!”

“Exactly!” Mark exclaimed. “You work best under pressure. If I’ve learned one thing about you in the last three years, it’s that.”

The two turned down into Mark’s driveway and entered his house, immediately going into the older’s bedroom, sitting on the floor and practically soaking the carpet.

“Okay, step one-”

“You sound like Jungwoo.” Jeno interrupted, making a disgusted expression.

“Damn, you hate him that much?”

“I don’t hate him, he’s just, well, weird.” The younger shrugged. “He told me to be ready for ‘phase two’ of his weird wingman bullshit. He took me shoplifting for phase one.”

“He WHAT?”

“I just took a candy bar.”

Mark relaxed immediately. “Damn, okay. I thought you stole a bike or some shit. Anyway, you’re right, Jungwoo is quite the character. You’ll like him sooner or later.”

Jeno rolled his eyes, bringing the topic back to Jaemin. “So, how do you expect me to talk to him?”

“Well-” The older was interrupted by a knock on the door. “Speaking of phase two…” Mark stood up and walked into the hallway to answer the door. 

“Hey whores.” Jungwoo strutted in, throwing his bag into the corner of the bedroom and taking a seat on Mark’s bed despite being soaked as well.

Mark opened his mouth to protest but shut it after realizing that it was Jungwoo he was talking to, and he wouldn’t budge. Jeno looked annoyed, speaking in a hushed voice. “Why didn’t you tell me he was coming over?”

“He was supposed to walk with us, but he had to talk to a teacher about something or whatever, I should’ve told you, sorry.”

The younger threw his head back in annoyance. “Did you not just hear me complaining about him? He gives me bad vibes.”

“Look, he can help you, I promise. He’s an expert at this stuff. He’s practically cupid.” Mark explained, just then realizing that Jungwoo was staring at them the whole time.

The senior just shook his head, smiling. “First of all, thanks for the compliment hun, and second of all, Jeno, I know you don’t like me. But that’s okay, because as soon as I get you and Jaemin together, you’ll wish you hadn’t said that.” He winked.

Jeno just looked at him with an expression that could only be described as not good. “How did you know I was going to Mark’s? I didn’t even know I was coming here until like ten minutes ago.”

“Oh, I didn’t.” Jungwoo explained, now putting his muddy combat boots on the edge of the bed, earning an exasperated look from Mark. “It was pure coincidence. I guess it’s your lucky day.”

The younger rolled his eyes, walking over to put his hand on Jeno’s shoulder. “Okay, well, what are y’all waiting for?”

\---

“Oh god, oh god, uhhh, I shouldn't-” Jeno’s shaky thumb hovered over the send button, Jungwoo and Mark hovering over his shoulders. 

“Pussy.” Jungwoo pushed Jeno’s hand down, hitting send. 

The younger tossed the phone onto the rug in front of him, turning to smack Jungwoo in the arm. “What the fuck?”

Mark laughed, picking the phone up and looking at the screen. “Dude, chill, all you said was hi.”

It was now 10:00 at night, and the two had somehow convinced Jeno to message Jaemin on Instagram. 

“He’s probably not even up now-” Mark raised an eyebrow at the phone in his hand. “I stand corrected. 

Jeno snatched it from the older and looked at the ‘typing’ sign next to Jaemin’s profile picture. His face lit up at the reply.

Najaeminn: whats up man?

Jungwoo snorted. “Oh my GOD that is the straightest greeting I have ever seen in my life.”

Mark elbowed him in the ribs. “Shut up, don’t discourage him.”

“What do I say back?” Jeno asked, sounding very similar to a middle school girl texting a boy for the first time.

Jungwoo snatched the phone, explaining. “You don’t want the conversation to be dry. Say something quirky, attention grabbing.”

“What if I just ask him about the project earlier? I mean, that’s the only thing we’ve ever done together.” Jeno scratched the back of his head. 

Mark nodded. “Not bad, go ahead.”

Jjenoo00: hey, sorry about science, i was a bit out of it, wasnt feeling well haha

Jungwoo burst out laughing. “I didn’t tell you to apologize to him.”

Jeno shushed him. “I know what I’m doing, he’s my crush, not yours.”

“If I’m correct, you asked for help like five seconds ago, so-”

“Jungwoo shut up.” Mark elbowed him in the ribs again.

“Shit he replied!”

Najaeminn: nah its cool man

“And the conversation dies.” The light-brown haired senior sighed.

Najaeminn: u ok?

“I stand corrected.”

Jjenoo00: yeah, just a headache

Najaeminn: ah ok, sorry if i was a little weird earlier too, my boyfriend broke up with me and after lunch jaehyun and doyoung found out and they were pissed that i had a boyfriend in the first place, and oh my god im rambling im so sorry i didnt mean to make this about me

Jeno’s jaw dropped. “He’s-”

“He’s one of us!” Jungwoo threw his fist in the air. “Damn, I would have never known. My gaydar must be off a bit, I always know.”

Mark was in shock as well. “Oh my god, Jeno, reply, this is… Perfect.”

Jjenoo00: im sorry to hear that :( i had no idea that you dated boys too

Najaeminn: yeah haha. I tried telling doyoung and jaehyun that i was bisexual but they kept telling me that it was just a phase or whatever and that everyone gets gay thoughts lol. But i really liked this one guy and we dated secretly for a month 

Najaeminn: he told me i was too distant so he ended it :( its fine tho ig he was a bit overprotective

Najaeminn: oh my god

Najaeminn: im so sorry tmi i shouldnt be telling you this i dont even know you

Jjenoo00: then why dont we get to know each other then?

“Smooth.” Jungwoo nodded in approval, a rare sight.

Najaeminn: sure, i could use a new friend, since i dont really have anyone anymore

Jjenoo00: damn, they really just cut you off like that?

Najaeminn: yeah,,, theyre not really homophobic when it comes to other people, but i guess when its someone they know, they get all weird about it

Jjenoo00: you should sit with us tomorrow, the entire group is gay lmao

Najaeminn: really? Perfect, i will

Jjenoo00: sweet 

Jjenoo00: how did you keep up the straight act for that long?

Najaeminn: i mean, i am bisexual, so all of the girls i dated were real relationships, but i had so many crushes on boys but i couldnt say anything about them

Najaeminn: in fact, i still have a crush on one so im lowkey glad my boyfriend broke up w me

Jjenoo00: good to hear

Jjenoo00: i have a crush too lol

Najaeminn: i wonder who? Lmao

Jjenoo00: that is information i cant give away haha

Najaeminn: im sure ill get it out of you sooner or later

Najaeminn: anyway im gonna go to bed, i had a rough day. See you tomorrow?

Jjenoo00: of course! gn

Jeno put the phone down, still in utter shock. “Did I just?”

“Yes you did.” Jungwoo patted him on the shoulder. “I told you, texting him would be a good step.”

“He’s bisexual! What- How- Oh my god! I’m dreaming aren’t I?”

Mark smacked Jeno in the face playfully. “Look at me. Tomorrow, after school, ask him to the dance. No note, no text, do it in person.”

“He said he had a crush, you never know, it could be you.” Jungwoo shrugged. 

“God, I hope so.”


	4. 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the lack of updates,,, I wasn't sure if I wanted to continue this fic, but I got a sudden idea for it the other day. Updates should be a bit more frequent now, lol.

“Wake up dumbass.” Mark ripped the thin sheet off of Jeno, who was on the floor. 

“Wh- Shit.” Jeno had fallen asleep at Mark’s forgetting that there was school the next day. He’d done it before, but he wouldn’t have stayed up until four if he had remembered. “I got a whole two hours of sleep.”

“Your fault.” Jungwoo muttered, looking dead still half asleep under the covers of Mark’s bed, which he refused to give up. Mark slept on the floor.

The two youngers spent about fifteen minutes getting ready before returning to the bedroom to yank Jungwoo out of bed, who had fallen asleep again. He didn’t have any time to get ready, thanks to his supreme laziness, so he spent the entire walk to school looking through the front camera on his phone trying to fix his hair, which, by the way, looked just fine.

The day dragged on as usual for them, Jeno being the exception. Despite running on two hours of sleep, he couldn’t stop worrying about how lunch would go. He was wide awake, and rather hyper, and Renjun pointed it out. Jeno shrugged it off and told him not to worry about it, he’d know soon enough.

By the time fifth period rolled around, the sudden realization hit Jeno like a brick. He forgot that he had Science with Jaemin, right before lunch. He tried to ignore the uproar of butterflies in his stomach as he walked into the classroom, taking his typical seat next to Renjun. Jaemin was nowhere to be seen, but he didn’t think much of it, the bell wouldn’t ring for another three minutes.

Soon, the bell rang, and still, no Jaemin. The teacher began speaking about the lesson, no Jaemin. He started handing out papers, and still, no Jaemin. Eventually, it was nearing the end of class, and Jeno had finally accepted that maybe he was sick or something. But his gut told him that he was trying to avoid him, and Renjun noticed the obvious disappointment in his friend’s eyes. He opened his mouth to ask him about it, but got distracted by the door opening. Jaemin walked in in a rushed state, handing the teacher a slightly crumpled yellow slip of paper. He was late. Jeno sighed in relief, Renjun now realizing what the problem was.

Jaemin walked directly past his assigned seat, pulling a chair over to the other side of Jeno, Renjun raising an eyebrow in confusion. He ignored, paying attention to the teacher’s closing regards before the lunch bell would ring. Luckily, the teacher didn’t care enough to tell Jaemin to go back to his real seat.

\---

“What on earth is going on?” Renjun finally whispered to Jeno, quiet enough so that the rest of the lunch table wouldn’t hear him.

“It’s kinda hard to explain-”

“We’ve got all lunch, shoot.”

Jeno’s eyes shot over to the other side of the cafeteria, and Jaemin was still in line. “Look, okay.” He made sure he had a shushed tone. “I texted Jaemin last night, and one thing led to another, he told me he was bisexual and that Jaehyun and Doyoung basically disowned him, so I told him he could sit with us.”

The older’s eyes were wide. “How the hell did you do that?” 

“Oh don’t worry about it.” Jeno scooched over a bit, pulling a chair over from the other table so that Jaemin would have a place to sit.

“What a gentleman.” Renjun teased, Jaemin approaching, looking just about as nervous as Jeno himself.

“What’s up?” Jaemin may have looked nervous, but his voice didn’t sound it. The rest of the table, minus Jungwoo and Mark, was clearly a little confused. Jeno realized that it would be rude to make Jaemin explain himself, so he took matters into his own hands.

“I told him he could sit here, Doyoung and Jaehyun are complete asshats.” He said the last part a bit louder, in hopes that anyone in their radius would hear it.

Donghyuck nodded slowly, shrugging. “Alright, it’s fine by me. What’s up with them, though? You guys were so close that you practically looked like a really small cult.”

Jaemin laughed, some tension leaving him. “They found out I had a secret boyfriend, so they dropped my ass. Fuck them anyway.”

“Wait,” Jisung leaned forward, still a little weirded out. “You’re gay?”

“Bisexual.” The older corrected, taking a couple french fries from his tray. “Ah, it’s been a while since I’ve eaten school lunch. I’m used to having whatever the hell those two bought. Sometimes we’d eat candy and candy only, but most of the time it was pizza. Speaking of pizza, how is it here?”

“Disgusting.” Yukhei scoffed at his own slice, clearly regretting wasting two dollars on it. 

“Alright, alright, enough small talk.” Jungwoo shushed everyone, clearly unnamused. “Who’s going to the dance on Friday?”

Everyone raised a hand. 

“I’m going with Jisung, but that’s old news, I’m sure.” Chenle interjected immediately, grabbing his boyfriend’s hand under the table. 

“I guess I’ll tag along as the certified third wheel.” Renjun joked, but you could tell he was a bit jealous. 

“I’m going, but I’ll have to join Renjun in the third wheel squad.” Jaemin laughed, fist bumping the older.

Mark gave Jeno a look that said something along the lines of ‘you’re totally asking him out later’. Jeno threw a piece of bread at him.

“Okay, so we’re all going then?” Yukhei looked around at everyone as they all nodded. “Then let’s all go together. Obviously we’ll branch off and stuff, but you know, nine of us walking in at once? Absolute power move.”

Jungwoo rolled his eyes. He and his boyfriend were two very different people, but opposites do attract. “Nine people won’t fit in a car, dodo.”

“Yes, but nine people fit on a sidewalk.” Yukhei crossed his arms. “We’re walking.”

“Okay, then meet at my house at 6:00, Friday.” Mark directed before leaving to go take care of his tray.

\---

“I was thinking that I could drop him a text, you know? That way he doesn’t have to see my face, I’ll probably look dumb as hell.” Jeno suggested, but Jungwoo wasn’t buying any of it.

“Bullshit.” The older squinted his eyes. “Over text is the easiest way into it. But it’s the least meaningful. If you want the relationship to last, you have to make a good impression. Show that you really do like him, say it to his face.”

Mark nodded in agreement. The three went back to his house after school.

“It’s only Tuesday.” Jeno mentioned, shrinking away from Jungwoo’s increasingly unsettling glare. “I’m just saying, I have, like, three days.”

“What, you’re gonna ask him out the day of the dance?” Mark snorted. 

“What’s wrong with that? That would be cute, right?” The younger tried to defend himself.

“That would be the opposite of cute.” Jungwoo crossed his arms. “He might feel pressured to say yes. That’s literally the worst case scenario here. Worse than him saying no.”

“Ask him tomorrow, before we walk home.” Mark suggested, noticing the sudden silent panic flowing through his friend. “Okay, okay, before you flip your shit, remember that he did say that he liked someone. AND, he seems pretty comfortable around you already. What are the odds?”

“The fact that he opened up to you about being bisexual immediately really says something too.” Jungwoo pointed out, earning a glare from Mark as he put his nasty combat boots on his sheets for the 98379th time. “He even told you about Jaehyun and Doyoung. Would he do that to anyone else? Maybe, but we don’t know that.”

“Okay, but consider this.” Mark stood up, clearly somewhat excited. “After school, Jungwoo and I will wait on the other side of the parking lot, and when you walk out, you can talk to Jaemin. He’s always sitting on the curb, you can’t miss him. Grow a pair and tell him how you feel, and if he rejects you, we’ll call your name and you can walk over to us and get yourself out of the situation, you know, so it’s not as awkward. And if it does go well, then we’ll go from there. It’s a foolproof plan. All we need for it to work, though, is your cooperation. You in?”

Jeno sat there wide-eyed. “Tomorrow?” 

Jungwoo rolled his eyes. “Oh my GOD, you act like you have 80 years to confess to him. Yes, tomorrow. Just get it over with, you’re not gonna die.”

The youngest thought for a moment, taking a deep breath. “Fine. Tomorrow it is.”


	5. 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait, I finally have a solid plan for this story, so chapters should start being more interesting lol

The next day, Jaemin sat with them at lunch again, and the whole time, Jungwoo and Mark kept giving Jeno little looks that annoyed the absolute shit out of him. He was noticeably nervous, and he was seriously considering pretending to be sick so that he could go home early, but there was no way in hell Jungwoo and Mark would believe him.

He didn’t listen to a single word any of his teachers said during the last two periods, and when the final bell rang, he was just about ready to evaporate into thin air. Before leaving the building, he ran into the bathroom and fixed his hair real quick. He would be lying if he said that he didn’t have a little pep talk with himself in the mirror, but no one else was in there, so he went unnoticed. 

As he walked outside, he saw Jungwoo and Mark conversing across the parking lot, where they said they’d be. He was really going to do this. He took a deep breath, turning to the curb, pretending that he had just noticed Jaemin for the first time. 

“What’s up?” Jaemin scooched over a bit so that Jeno could take a seat beside him, despite the entire curb being empty already.

Jeno swallowed thickly. “I, uh, I was actually wondering if, you know, uh-”

Jaemin raised an eyebrow at the older as he struggled to make a coherent sentence.

“Go to the dance with me. I mean, uh, only if you want-” He didn’t get to finish his sentence, Jaemin interrupting him with a sudden, spastic hug. “I take that as a yes?”

The younger nodded frantically into the other’s shoulder, pulling away. “Jeno, I was hoping you’d ask! I was going to at lunch, but I chickened out. I mean, uh, yeah. Yes, I’ll go with you!”

Jungwoo and Mark were flipping their shit on the other side of the campus, high-fiving and smacking eachother in excitement. They tried to calm it down the second that the two youngers started walking over to them. 

“Well, well, well.” Jungwoo nodded in approval, something he almost never seemed to do. “Look at you two.”

Jeno rolled his eyes. “Shut up.”

Mark smiled, shaking his head. “Y’all wanna get something to eat? I have some cash to burn.”

Jaemin shrugged. “Sure, why not.” 

The four began walking across the street, making their way downtown to find a cheap restaurant. The sun was out for the first time in a while, and there was a light breeze, summer had finally begun. 

“Does this mean that we’re, uh,” Jaemin turned to Jeno sheepishly. “Dating?”

Jungwoo and Mark overheard, both making faces at each other. Jeno ignored, looking the younger in the eyes, something that he couldn’t really bring himself to do before. “If that’s what you want it to mean, then yes.”

Jaemin nodded, acting all shy, which seemed way out of character for him. It was cute. “Please.”

For the next five minutes, the two kept whispering and giggling to each other, so of course Jungwoo had to say something. “Oh my god if you guys don’t shut up I’m gonna shove you into the street.” God, he had such a weird way of showing affection. 

\---

Friday approached faster than Jeno thought it would, but here he was, fixing his tie in front of the mirror in Mark’s bathroom. 

“You look fine.” Mark reassured the younger, fixing his collar. 

“Am I overdressed?” 

“No, I promise you’ll be fine, it’s the grad dance, everyone’s gonna wear some fancy shit. You’ll look like everyone else- Oh shit.” The older exited the room to go get the door, someone was knocking aggressively. 

“What’s up, whores.” Jeno recognized Jungwoo’s signature entrance, walking out into the living room to greet him. However, he wasn’t alone, he had Yukhei with him, and they both looked amazing. “The others are all coming together, they should be here in five.” Jungwoo made a beeline for the bathroom, raiding the cabinets for hairspray. 

Yukhei chased after him, removing his boyfriend from the bathroom. “Oh my god, Jungwoo, you look fine. You could be bald for all I care, jesus.”

“Aww,” Mark cooed sarcastically as the two walked back into the living room, taking a seat on the couch. “How cute.”

“Shit!” Jeno jumped, scaring the shit out of everyone. “I don’t have anything to give Jaemin- Do you have flowers outside? I’m sure he wouldn’t notice-”

“Oh my fucking god, Jeno.” Mark laughed, forcing the other to sit down. “You don’t need to give him anything, just be yourself. If that’s not good enough for him then you know he’s not worth your time.”

Jeno stayed quiet for the next five minutes, until there was more frantic knocking on the door. Mark answered it, and literally everyone else piled in, Donghyuck pulling the older away from the door with a hug. Jaemin caught Jeno’s eye, and walked over. He looked astonishing. His light brown hair swept off his forehead, wearing a nice white dress shirt and a simple black tie, black jeans giving him a more casual look. “Hey.”

“You look- wow.” Jeno struggled to say, standing up. 

“Is that a good thing?” Jaemin joked, but the older didn’t seem to pick up on that part.

“Yes, of course, sorry, I’m nervous.”

“Okay bitches, let’s go!” Donghyuck shouted, interrupting the two’s dry conversation. After pulling Jungwoo out of the bathroom again, they finally left the house and began walking uphill to the school. The sky looked like it was threatening to rain again, and they all hoped that it would contain itself until they were inside. 

“We’re gonna be late.” Jisung sighed, checking the time on his phone. “It’s already 7:00.”

“It’s fine, I’m sure we’re not missing anything.” Renjun shrugged. Everyone kind of felt bad for him now, being the only single one. He was basically one huge third wheel, but they’d try not to treat him like one.

Jaemin kept brushing hands with Jeno in hopes that they’d hold hands, but Jeno’s kind of an idiot with that kind of stuff, so it took him five minutes before he actually grabbed his hand. He felt his ears heating up, and he was thankful that it was overcast and somewhat dark out.

Eventually, they reached the school, and there were cars parked along the street, people dressed in flashy, bright dresses, and expensive looking hand-me-down suits littering the campus. Most were in line, waiting to get into the actual dance, so they weren’t that late after all. 

As they stepped into line, Jaemin jumped, cussing to himself and trying to hide himself behind Jeno.

“The fuck are you doing?” Chenle whispered, raising an eyebrow. 

Jaemin pointed to the two people at the entrance, the ones who you gave your money to and sold drinks and stuff. Doyoung and Jaehyun. 

Jeno felt his face drain of color. They’d have to get through them if they wanted to get in. Suddenly, staying at home seemed a lot better. As they moved up in the line, the two older boys hadn’t taken notice to the group, but it was only a matter of time. Two long, dreadful minutes floated by and they were face to face with the last people they wanted to see.

“Two dollars please.” Doyoung muttered, not looking up. Jaehyun elbowed him, and he ended up making eye contact with Jaemin. “Oh, look who it is.”

“Shut the fuck up.” Jaemin said boldly, shrinking away at Jaehyun’s sharp glare.

“Excuse me?” 

Jaemin didn’t respond, slapping two dollars onto the plastic fold-out table and stepping to the side to wait for the rest of the group. But before he could get away, Doyoung grabbed him by the wrist and yanked him over to the table again. “You better watch your fucking mouth, buddy.” He shoved him back over to the wall, where he pretended to look unphased. But clearly, he was a little scared.

Everyone else went through one by one, each and every one of them getting glared at by the two seniors, until finally, they got into the gym.

Clearly, the dance had already taken off. In the corner there was a group of couples twerking on each other, in another corner there were some guys trying their hardest to do a full split, and it the middle there was already a dance off going on. It was dark, the only light being a series of flashing colors, a shitty fog machine in another absent corner. The music was so loud that you had to yell to hear each other, but that was okay. 

“Well,” Jaemin sat down on the bottom bleacher, clearly a little shaken up from what had just happened. “That happened.”

Yukhei sighed, putting an arm around the younger. “Yes. It did. But don’t let that ruin your night, okay?”

“I bet they suck each other’s dicks when they’re alone.” Jungwoo commented, everyone else erupting in laughter. “I’m serious, they give me those ‘I’m so straight that I’m gay’ vibes, you know?”

“He’s got a point.” Donghyuck took a sip of water, earning weird looks from everyone. “What?”

“Where did you get that water?” 

The red-haired male shrugged. “Stole it.”

“From?”

“Behind Doyoung and Jaehyun’s table. They were supposed to put them out for people to buy but clearly they’re too stupid to do even the simplest job- wait Chenle, where are you going?”

“To go steal some water, duh.”

“No, they’re gonna see you. I did it when they weren’t looking.”

“I have my ways.” The blond turned around, walking out of the gym and into the hall where the table was. No one was sitting there, the water just out in the open. He took as many as he could possibly carry, entering the gym with a smug look on his face. “I got the goods.”

“How the hell- twelve?!” Renjun grabbed one for himself as Chenle placed the rest in a pile on the floor. “You grabbed twelve?”

Chenle shrugged. “They weren’t sitting there anymore. Literally no one could see me, it’s fine.”

“Where the hell did they go then?” Jisung asked, grabbing two waters for himself, almost finishing one in a single sip. 

“To suck each other’s dicks.” Renjun muttered, smirking.

\---

The dance was now one hour in, and it was absolutely wild. There were empty cups and bags littering the gym, and one guy had drank so much soda that he’d managed to throw up. They still hadn’t played a single slow song though, and Jeno was getting impatient. 

“Jisung, stop, you’re gonna get sick.” Chenle took the water from his boyfriend. “You’ve literally drank three bottles already. It’s not alcohol, jeez.”

“Chill, it’s just water.” Jisung rolled his eyes. “Hey, when are they gonna do a slow song?”

“That’s what I was wondering.” Jeno sighed.

“Where’s Jaemin? He was here a second ago.”

“Bathroom.” Renjun told the younger. “He’s probably nervous, what if he’s hiding?”

Jeno shook his head. “He wouldn’t do that. I think he’d tell me, or, well, I hope he would.”

Suddenly, the DJ stopped the loud music, informing everyone that the next song was gonna be a slow one. Jeno’s heart sank. What the hell was taking Jaemin so long?


End file.
